Divine Appeal Reflection - 26
Today, consider in Divine Appeal 26: "This poor humanity is blind and deaf to My call of love. I would like to insist on this and ask, 'Why don’t they pray more?' The air is contaminated; everything is full of sin. What a pain!"
The soul often loses sight not through rebellion but through saturation. Christ’s gaze falls upon hearts dulled by constant exposure—noise, urgency, compromise—until the interior senses grow weak. Scripture already names this condition when wisdom cries out in public places yet remains unheard (cf. Prv 1:20–24). The first movement of this roadmap is attentive sobriety: choosing to wake up interiorly. The Catechism teaches that recollection is not automatic;(cf. CCC 2691) it is a grace welcomed through discipline and humility . Consider Saint John of Avila, who warned that spiritual blindness begins when souls no longer notice God passing by. This awakening occurs in overlooked moments: a market vendor refusing dishonest weights, a commuter choosing silence instead of cynical talk, a farmer offering fatigue to God at dusk. These are not heroic gestures but attentive ones. Biblical personalities show this realism—Samuel learned to recognize the Lord’s voice only after repeated confusion and patient listening (cf. 1 Sam 3). Attentiveness grows through intentional pauses: stopping before decisions, blessing hands before work, consciously offering exhaustion. Each pause becomes a response to Christ’s gaze: “I am present, even if unclear.” Over time, attentiveness restores interior hearing, allowing grace to interrupt routine again. This first step does not purify the world, but it reopens the soul to being purified within it.
Prayer weakens when the heart adapts to spiritual pollution as normal. Scripture compares this to incense choked by foreign smoke (cf. Jer 6:20). The second movement is rehabilitation of prayer, not as eloquence but as fidelity. Saint Peter Julian Eymard observed that souls stop praying not because God is absent, but because they no longer expect Him to act. The Catechism (cf. CCC 2733) insists that prayer perseveres not by feeling but by decision, especially when dryness exposes hidden attachments . Prayer must be reinserted where life feels most compromised. For a shopkeeper, prayer may mean blessing the till before opening; for a nurse, offering hands before touching patients; for a teacher, entrusting difficult students silently. Biblical figures show this adaptability—Esther prayed amid political danger, not in sanctuary peace (cf. Est 4:16). Saints like Madeleine Sophie Barat taught that short, repeated invocations purify the heart gradually. Even prayer spoken without consolation cleanses the interior air, because fidelity resists suffocation. Each return to prayer—however imperfect—repositions the soul beneath Christ’s gaze, where contamination is not ignored but slowly healed.
Sin often spreads not through deliberate choice but through environmental absorption. Scripture speaks of cities whose injustice became habitual rather than shocking (cf. Am 6:1–6). The third movement is lucid discernment: learning to recognize what deforms vision. The Catechism (cf. CCC 1791) explains that repeated sin dulls conscience, making conversion appear unnecessary . Saint Catherine of Genoa described this as rust forming on the soul—gradual, unnoticed, yet obstructive. Discernment requires naming what clouds prayer: sarcasm normalized at work, impurity disguised as humor, small dishonesties justified as survival. For a driver, it may mean resisting road rage; for a politician, refusing quiet corruption; for a young adult, rejecting relational manipulation. Biblical personalities teach this vigilance—Lot’s distress in Sodom shows that remaining sensitive amid corruption is itself a grace (cf. 2 Pt 2:7–8). Daily examination of conscience becomes not self-accusation but clarity-seeking. Sacramental reconciliation restores transparency because it places the soul again before merciful sight . Each act of discernment clears space for prayer to breathe and for love to act without distortion.
True sight always seeks embodiment. Scripture consistently unites seeing God with walking rightly (cf. Mic 6:8). The fourth movement is transfiguration of duty: letting Christ’s gaze shape how tasks are performed. Saint Josephine Bakhita lived holiness through obedience in hidden labor, teaching that dignity restores vision even in oppression. This means offering excellence without applause: a mechanic repairing honestly, a caregiver maintaining patience, a religious fulfilling routine without complaint. The Catechism (cf. CCC 2013) affirms that holiness is accessible in every state of life through charity expressed concretely . Biblical figures model this integration—Bezalel served God through craftsmanship, not prophecy (cf. Ex 31:1–5). Each task, consciously offered, becomes intercession. Even resistance to sin—guarding speech, honoring boundaries, refusing exploitation—becomes apostolic. The gaze of Christ, received in prayer, is reflected outward through faithful action. Over time, environments begin to shift—not dramatically, but perceptibly—as integrity interrupts moral decay. Thus, the soul does not escape polluted air; it becomes a place where clarity quietly spreads.
The final movement is patient endurance. Christ’s gaze remains even when transformation is slow. Scripture assures that those who sow in tears will reap in joy, though seasons pass between (cf. Ps 126:5–6) . The Catechism (cf. CCC 2730) teaches that perseverance joins the believer to Christ’s own steadfast obedience . Saint Charles de Foucauld spent years unseen, yet his fidelity became seed for future fruit. Endurance looks like remaining honest when dishonesty prospers, remaining chaste when mocked, remaining prayerful when distracted. For widows, it is hope amid loneliness; for the chronically ill, trust amid unanswered petitions; for missionaries, love amid apparent failure. Biblical personalities reveal this patience— (cf. Gen 6–7) Noah labored long before rain justified obedience . Perseverance is sustained through Eucharistic life, Scripture, and remembrance of past mercies. Each day lived consciously before God becomes resistance against blindness. Gradually, the soul discovers that clarity has been growing quietly. The gaze of Christ, patiently endured, stabilizes sight and makes fidelity fruitful beyond what is visible.
Prayer
Our Adorable Jesus, remain with us as light within confusion. Purify our sight, steady our prayer, and strengthen fidelity in ordinary duties. In every vocation, let our perseverance beneath Your gaze heal what is polluted, awaken what is numb, and quietly restore love where it has grown faint.
Sr. Anna Ali of the Most Holy Eucharist, intercede for us.
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